The Death That Loved
by rizandace
Summary: Once On This Island- After Ti Moune's death, Papa Ge contemplates what the peasant girl meant to him and his fellow Gods. And will history repeat itself, with Daniel and Andrea's son?
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: I hope that you Once On This Island fans out there get to read this. We need a bigger fanfiction base! This story is the product of my being in this play recently and having it be the most life changing experience ever. I think we were all in tears for like, three hours after the final curtain on closing night. So touching. Anyways, please read, and drop a review. This is not a one-shot. I've got more written, but I'm not going to bother posting it if no one reads it. And if no one reviews, I'm gonna assume you didn't like it enough to bother. Ok, I'll shut up now and let you read.

The Death that Loved

_Slam_. A door. Next, a shaky breath.

_Damn_ it. Why did that little insignificant girl get to him so much? She… she… why didn't Ti Moune kill that stupid aristocratic bastard? Why did she starve herself? Papa Ge sighed and plopped down onto a folding chair. The hall of their _humble_ abode echoed loudly with the sound of his sighs and a light groan issued out of his cracked lips. His hand, still shaky, came up and brushed unruly black locks out of his dark face.

This was getting ridiculously maudlin. He was the God of _Death_. This was his _job_, his life's work. Why the Hell would…

The faces of his three best friends flashed through his mind. Erzulie's face… He closed his eyes and shook his head. Porcelain features, perfectly silver tears rolling down flushed cheeks. Another shaky sob issued forth from the powerful God's mouth.

Agwe, whose tears had often caused devastation the earth as he cried out his grief, letting gentle tears fall for the dead spirit of Ti Moune. Asaka, Papa Ge's sister, his confidant, holding the girl to her chest, sobbing, shaking.

Papa Ge, horrified, moved slender fingers to wipe his tears away from his face. The God of Death did _not_ cry.

With his remarkable hearing, the rustling of fabric reached his ears. He stood quickly, trying to insert confidence, normalcy, into his stance. That broke the moment he saw his fellow Gods walk through the door of the clean and crisp mansion they called home.

Agwe had an arm wrapped around Asaka's shoulder, and silvery tears were still falling down his flawless face. The Goddess of the Earth was still hunched over, holding her stomach in pain.

"I-" Papa Ge couldn't think of anything to say.

Erzulie walked in behind the other two. Unlike the other three Gods, the Goddess of Love was holding her head high. Not a single golden strand of hair was out of place, and though her cheeks still glistened with tears, she seemed stoic, more mature and worldly wise than the other three.

She swept past her three friends, placing a comforting hand on Agwe's cheek as she passed him, and gripping Asaka's hand for one brief moment, a gesture of love and companionship.

And as she passed Papa Ge, she placed a hand on his shoulder. _Come talk to me_.

Erzulie had no need to speak the words aloud. Living with three other people since the beginning of time eliminated the need for words.

Sighing, Papa Ge allowed himself to be lead from the room by Erzulie. The door closed behind them. Although, of course, Asaka and Agwe could easily hear them through the flimsy wood, Erzulie and Papa Ge both knew that the closed door would be a symbol- they knew that their privacy would be respected.

"Papa Ge," Erzulie began, the clear bells of her voice making his name sound like music, rather than the curse that it really was.

"Erzulie… I can't understand…" of course, he had no need to finish. Erzulie knew exactly what her friend meant by his uncompleted sentence.

Papa Ge was the proudest of the four, but when he was alone with any one of the three of them, he could allow himself to be vulnerable, if only for a moment.

"You loved that girl, my friend," Erzulie said.

Papa Ge's eyes widened. Then, he scoffed. "That's ridic-

Swiftly, one of Erzulie's perfect fingers pressed against his dry lips to stop the flow of words.

"Don't finish that," she said softly.

"I'm the God of Death, Erzulie," Papa Ge said slowly.

She smiled a brilliant, sarcastic smile. "Yes, I know this."

A tentative smile crossed his harsh face, a very rare occurrence. "Love is not an emotion that I can feel."

Erzulie's eyes opened wide, and then narrowed. "Well, personally, Papa Ge, I find that rather offensive, and I'm sure Agwe and Asaka would back me up on that one."

"What are you talking about?"

"You don't love us?"

"I-" Papa Ge's hand clenched reflexively. _Damn it_. "That's… different."

"Is it?" Erzulie challenge.

"You three are… you are… Ti Moune is _mortal!_" A pause. "Well, she _was_ mortal."

"Love conquers Death; I've told you this before. Just because she doesn't live as a peasant any longer doesn't mean she is gone."

Papa Ge felt a tremor run through him, down his spine and into his toes. "Why don't you hate me?" he finally whispered.

Erzulie, for the first time during this conversation, lost her composure. "Wh-what?"

"I _killed_ that girl. We all loved her and I killed her!" The God of Death felt his face crumple in grief, and his breaths came in short bursts.

"You didn't kill her."

"What?" Came his sharp and sarcastic laugh. "Yes, I did. She gave her soul to me, and I crushed it. I ended the spark in her eyes; I destroyed the life of that girl."

Erzulie, to Papa Ge's shock, smiled. "I could _never_ hate you. None of us could ever hate you. Everyone must die eventually. And you didn't kill her."

"Why do you keep saying that?"

She smiled that annoyingly superior smile and turned toward the door. "Asaka, Agwe, could you come in here, please?"

The door opened in a swift movement. The other half of the four best friends entered the room. Agwe had Asaka's hand firmly clasped in his, and as he entered the room, his other calloused hand grabbed Erzulie's soft, warm one. Papa Ge watched them, a little envious of their closeness.

It was his pride that separated him from this.

"Erzulie, what-" Papa Ge started.

"Shh…" Asaka said. "She isn't dead."

Papa Ge shook his head. "She's dead. She lives no more. The last breath left her body, her heart beats no more. She's _gone_." Awfully, his voice cracked on the last word.

Agwe stepped closer to his forlorn companion, bringing the two beautiful women on each arm forward with him. "Her soul was too strong to be distinguished. You know this. I know this. We all know it. She'll be watching over her love and his family for as long as that tree stands between the two different worlds on the island."

"I want to kill that stupid bastard," Papa Ge said, feeling his fist clench once again. "As a matter of fact, I think I _will_ kill him. Maybe a common disease, or, or a fatal accident. Hey, 'Saka, do you think you could help me with an earthquake? Or a storm, Agwe?"

"No," Agwe said. "You can't kill Daniel Beauxhomme."

"Why not? He deserves it."

Erzulie sighed and shook her head. Softly, she grabbed Papa Ge's hand. Asaka reached for the other one, and the four stood in a circle. "Ti Moune died to save that boy. Ti Moune let you take her life so that he would be spared. She was unable to kill him with your knife. How do you think she would feel if you took his life the day after her own death?"

Another tear escaped from Papa Ge's pitch-black eyes. He tried to pull his hand out of Erzulie's to wipe it away, but she tightened her grip and held him captive.

"This makes no sense," Asaka murmured suddenly.

"What?" Erzulie asked, staring at her friend, her sister.

"We're immortal. We will live for the rest of time. Human lives are too pitifully short for any one of us to get emotionally attached. And now, look at us."

"She would have died soon, anyway. Human lives are but a flicker of time to us," Agwe added. Subconsciously, three of the four gods were turned toward Erzulie, waiting for her answers. If anyone could explain this weird feeling, it would be her.

She smiled her radiant smile. Being the youngest, and often times, most foolish God did not mean that her opinion was not valued. "I pride myself on understanding love more than anyone. But today, I was proved wrong about myself."

Papa Ge jerked his hand away from Erzulie's. "What are you talking about? You won! Love conquered Death."

"Yes, it did. So I suppose I did win. But I didn't think I was going to, not really."

"Erzulie, what are…" Asaka began, shaking her head slowly back and forth. On occasion, even Gods had the right to be confused.

"I've seen too many ruined love stories to truly believe that Love is stronger than the desire to live. I knew in my heart that Ti Moune was helplessly in love with Daniel Beauxhomme, and that he returned this feeling."

"Of course you knew it," Papa Ge muttered. "You're the one who made them fall in love."

Erzulie laughed. "There are no magic words, no secret power that causes two people to fall in love. The emotion is all human. I simply help the seed grow into something slightly sturdier."

"If you knew that they loved each other, why did you doubt your power over Papa Ge's?" Agwe asked.

"The moment that our brother here gave that knife to the grieving Ti Moune, I was sure I had lost. I thought that no matter what happened, no girl, no matter how in love, would chose the life and happiness of another over her own spirit. Who would do such a thing?"

"Ti Moune would," Agwe said, closing his eyes and letting a few fresh tears fall.

Erzulie placed her forehead against Agwe's temple and closed her eyes, sharing in his grief.

"We know she was special to you, Agwe," Asaka said, resting her head on his broad shoulder. She pulled Papa Ge closer to the group, since their hands were still intertwined.

"Do you remember when I first noticed her?" Agwe asked.

Erzulie grimaced. "Yes, I do."

FLASBACK

"_Erzulie?" Asaka called. "What happened? Agwe won't speak to Papa Ge or I."_

_The beautiful Goddess of Love sighed and turned to face her sister._

"_He is upset with me."_

_Asaka's eyes widened. The four Gods never fought. That wasn't to say they didn't argue- animosity always existed when Papa Ge took the life of one of Erzulie's charges, or when Agwe's floods uprooted Asaka's trees, but these small quarrels were always resolved nearly instantly._

"_He attempted to overflow a river where an old man was washing. I saved his life." Erzulie said the words quietly, with her head bowed, waiting for reprimand. _

"_Erzulie! How could you interfere like that?"_

_Erzulie made no response._

_Asaka continued, seething. "The life of that man, the spirit of that man… that was between Agwe and Papa Ge."_

"_He did nothing wrong!" Erzulie argued._

"_That's not for you to decide, 'Zulie," Asaka said. Then she sighed. "I'd better go talk to him."_

* * *

"_Papa Ge," Agwe said, his voice cloaked in fury. "Come help me with something."_

_Papa Ge, who was sitting in the corner of the room, sprang lithely to his feet, and with the swiftness of a proud feline, he approached Agwe's side._

"_Are you going to tell me what it is Erzulie did, my brother?" Papa Ge's voice came out gruff and uncaring, but secretly he was worried for Agwe. The God of Water seemed genuinely upset by something._

"_I had a plan for an old peasant man, by the name of Julian. Drowning. Erzulie interfered._

_Papa Ge's fists clenched reflexively._

"_No matter," Agwe continued, his voice dark. "Now Julian's entire village will pay for Erzulie's foolishness."_

"_Agwe…" Papa Ge was shocked, but allowed the God to step forward and drop to the earth. He followed close behind Agwe, and the two stood on the edge of a large field where peasants were laboring._

"_Are you sure?" Papa Ge continued._

"_They've been taking my kindness for granted, of late. It's time they show me proper respect."_

_Papa Ge clasped a hand on Agwe's shoulder. "If this is what you want, then." He said, a whisper._

"_It is," Agwe said, and he closed his eyes and clenched both hands into fists. Every muscle tensed in his body._

_To anybody but another God, Agwe's posture would have meant very little. But Papa Ge understood. He watched as the sky darkened and clouds started to cluster together._

_The peasants working in the field saw the change in weather and sent up a quick prayer that Agwe would be merciful._

_Papa Ge turned to his friend. Agwe merely smiled maliciously and summoned forth a rumbling of terrific thunder._

"_Papa Ge, what is he doing?" Asaka moaned as the first big lash of wind uprooted shrubbery on the edge of the field._

_With hushed tones, so as not to disturb Agwe, Papa Ge filled Asaka in._

_The Earth Goddess sighed and stepped back, watching peasants gathering their things and running toward their huts._

_Wind lashed at their faces, rain drenched them. But Gods could not be bothered to care about any of these trivial things._

_Papa Ge was focused intently on the spirits that were dying all around him. He frowned slightly, taking the soul of a young man, and next, a frail old woman. This was Agwe's wish. Guilt could not prevail- taking people into the next world was his job._

_So intently focused were Agwe and Papa Ge in their respective works that they did not hear Erzulie's approach._

"_Stop. Agwe, please! I-I'm sorry, please don't kill them. Papa Ge, please, please!"_

_Asaka pulled Erzulie back. "You're being foolish, Erzulie. You now this is what must be done. There's no stopping it."_

_But no sooner had the Goddess spoken than did Agwe's shoulders relax slightly. His eyes snapped open. _

_The girls watched, confused. _

_Suddenly, Agwe's strong hand shot out and grabbed Papa Ge's shoulder. "Stop, please," he said, his voice choked. _

_Papa Ge came out of his intensive killing trance and stood straight. When Papa Ge killed, he crouched low to the ground, focused on destroying spirits, stealing souls._

"_Mamaaaa!" A voice called. Papa Ge recognized the little girl's voice as that of the spirit he had been about to take. _

"_Stop," Agwe said again, completely unnecessarily, since Papa Ge was doing nothing but staring at the God of Water._

"_Mamaaaa!" the voice sounded again. Erzulie stood straighter, and her gaze fell on a small peasant girl, of about age five or six, lying helplessly in the mud. Smiling, Erzulie took a step toward Agwe and grabbed his hand. _

"_Agwe, will you save her?"_

_The God of Water looked at the insignificant peasant girl, and then at the few dead peasants strewn across the flooded field. This girl didn't seem particularly special at the time, but some intuition told him… this little girl would be something to him some day, if only as a source of entertainment. She would be spared. As a plus, it would probably eliminate the strange tension between him and Erzulie._

_Agwe squeezed the Love Goddess's hand lightly. "I'm not sure why, but, yes. I'll spare her life."_

_Asaka grinned at Erzulie and lithely skipped across the clearing, picking up the little Ti Moune in her strong and slender arms, and placing her in a spritely tree. "You, little girl, are extremely lucky to have a guy like Agwe looking after you," she whispered, and then kissed the little girl on the forehead. "He'll be your loa, now. He'll watch after you, Ti Moune."_

_Ti Moune whimpered and tried to keep her pudgy arms around the Goddess's neck, but Asaka, smiling at her in adoration, stepped away and left her in the branches. _

_She was a rather pretty little thing, with dark smooth skin and soulful black eyes framed with thick lashes. Asaka couldn't see what was particularly special about her, but who was she to question Agwe's judgment?_

_When she returned to the other three, she saw Agwe smiling easily, a familiar friendly spark filling his light blue eyes. _

"_I am truly sorry, Agwe, for everything," Erzulie said._

_Papa Ge snorted, and Asaka laughed. "No you're not," she said. "You'd be feeling even worse if you had left that poor old man die."_

_Erzulie shrugged, allowing this. "I may have plans for him and his wife, now."_

"_He's married?" Agwe said, swallowing back a lump in his throat. "I didn't know that."_

"_They've been lovers since they were young. I facilitated that one," Erzulie said, grinning._

_Asaka laughed. "Don't you always?"_

END FLASHBACK

"And then we brought Julian and Euralie to little Ti Moune, and…" Agwe trailed off. "Well, you were there."

"Yes, we were," Asaka murmured.

Papa Ge, suddenly a little uncomfortable with the incessant amount of reminiscing, stepped back from the cuddly group.

"There's a- a lot of work to be done, so we should get to it."

The other three stared at him critically, but Papa Ge would not back down. "There's a sickly Grand Homme in the hotel…"

He swept out of the room, and he heard Agwe call out to him as he left- "Stay away from Daniel."

Papa Ge smirked.

"And his new wife, too!"

_Damn_.

* * *

Author's Note: Please remember to leave a review! It always helps to know what my readers are thinking. Also, if any of you are Twilight or Gilmore Girls fans, I've got some other fanfictions for these stories posted. You can find them on my profile.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: Thank you so much, OOTI fan, for taking the time to read and review! It's SO SAD how few people don't know about OOTI. It's ridiculous! This play was completely life changing for me, and it makes me sad that not very many people can share in how special it is. I hope that you continue to read and review. My updates will probably be fairly random, but I'll try not to keep you waiting for more than a few weeks, ever.**

**How did you become familiar with this show? Have you been in it? Any ways, I hope that you, my one loyal reviewer, enjoy the next chapter!**"Daniel, we have a social calling to attend, and your father wants to have us over for dinner some time soon," Andrea's voice, infused with a beautiful French accent, called out to her husband. "Daniel?"

* * *

Confused, the petite blonde woman turned back and re-entered the bedroom, where Daniel Beauxhomme sat wearily, resting his head against his hands.

It had been five months since Ti Moune's death, and Andrea was fairly certain that her husband had gotten over the tragic passing of the peasant. Sitting down beside his distressed form, Andrea placed a hand on his shoulder.

"What is it, my love?" she asked him softly.

Daniel looked up and into her light eyes, so different from the black eyes he wished he could see again. "I've been having this dream, Andrea."

He paused then, and when Andrea did nothing but look at him expectantly, he opened his mouth hesitantly to continue. "In the dream, there is a man. He's got dark skin, coal black eyes, and strange black markings all over his skin. He keeps on telling me he's coming to take me away."

Andrea frowned. "It's just a nightmare," she murmured to him.

"I suppose. But it feels so real. And… the man is _familiar_ to me. I think I dreamt about him once, long ago. When… when I was in a car crash that nearly took my life, this man was there. I know he was."

Andrea gripped his hand. "This is silliness, Daniel. Superstition. It's all a dream."

Daniel grimaced and looked away from his wife, pulling his hand away from her grasp.

"Are you angry?" Andrea asked timidly.

"No. Not at you."

But you are angry?" Andrea probed.

"At myself. For not having the words to explain this to you."

The couple sat in silence for a moment, but, abruptly, Andrea straightened up. "As I was saying, your father wanted to see us, and meet little no-name," she said, patting her slightly rounded stomach affectionately.

Daniel sighed and nodded, getting off the bed and walking out of the room with her to fulfill an obligation that had killed his Ti Moune.

* * *

The gods tried their hardest to go about their old lives, but without Ti Moune to watch after, there seemed to be very little to do. Papa Ge harvested his usual souls, Erzulie meddled in people's lives, and Asaka and Agwe furnished the island with spritely trees and flowing rivers. However, the gods found their minds wandering toward Andrea and her unborn child more often than was normal.

Papa Ge, sighing, watched a peasant family discover their oldest member of the family, an elderly grandfather, lying in bed, having passed peacefully in his sleep. Lately, Papa Ge hadn't the heart to take people's lives the way he used to. Now a days, he only killed those whose deaths were inevitable- old folks, people who had gotten diseases from working in the fields for long hours, or a few casualties resulting in particularly nasty arguments between Agwe and Asaka, the only two gods whose bouts of anger could result in earthquakes and floods down in the mortal world.

"Papa Ge," Erzulie murmured, appearing at his side.

"Erzulie," Papa Ge nodded his acknowledgement, and the two stared in silence at the mourning peasant family.

"Andrea is having her baby," Erzulie told him softly. Papa Ge's head snapped up. He tried to hide his interest in the topic, but the Love Goddess detected it straight away.

"Agwe and Asaka are already over there." A pause. "Are you coming?"

Papa Ge shrugged, and then, hesitantly, nodded his head. "Let's go."

Erzulie laughed her tinkling bell laugh and walked away, letting Papa Ge follow behind her.

* * *

A little boy. Named for his father. Daniel Beauxhomme. Papa Ge scoffed to himself. Original. This wasn't right. Daniel was not supposed to have a child with the French woman. Ti Moune was his love. How could Daniel betray her like this? Just because her human body existed no more, did not mean that she was gone.

And how… how could Ti Moune, forever a tree, watch her love get married to, and get pregnant, a woman other than herself? How awful it must be… to never have a choice.

"He's beautiful," Asaka murmured.

Agwe looked at her. "He's a Beauxhomme, of course he is."

"I'd like to be his loa, if that's alright with all of you," Asaka murmured, watching the boy with strange fascination.

Erzulie, Papa Ge, and Agwe all looked at each other, surprised. They had avoided discussing what to do about the boy when he was born, since they all assumed none of them would want the job of being responsible for such a life. Little Daniel, a new born child gently cradled in the fine young arms of Andrea, was a boy born into a family blackened by a hidden truth- Daniel did not love his wife. Or, if he did feel affection toward her, it was not the burning passion that he had felt for his dead peasant girl.

Agwe, shrugging, turned to his sister. "You can take him, if you like."

Asaka smiled, and, suddenly, Papa Ge noticed a mischievous glint appear in Mother Earth's eyes.

Erzulie and Agwe, intently observing the new family, noticed nothing.

* * *

Years have a way of passing quickly when you're immortal, and before Asaka, Agwe, Erzulie and Papa Ge knew it, little Daniel was ten years of age, a strapping young boy full of health and promise for a bright future.

Papa Ge had never forgotten the look that Asaka had worn the night of little Daniel's birth, but he had kept his brooding suspicions to himself.

And one day, as little Daniel was walking past Ti Moune's tree, he noticed a little girl sitting high in the branches…

And the spirit of Ti Moune touched their hearts and set them free to…

* * *

"As_aka!_ " Papa Ge demanded suddenly, striding through the front door of the house and slamming it behind him.

"Hmmm?" The Earth Goddess asked casually.

"Did you plan this?" he demanded shrilly.

"Papa Ge, what are you talking about?"

"Daniel and Andrea's boy. _You're _little Daniel's loa. He was meeting a peasant girl in Ti Moune's tree today. I watched them talk. There was a spark of something in their eyes that made me think…"

Papa Ge stopped short as Erzulie swept breezily into the room.

"A spark of _love! _Erzulie, was this you?"

Erzulie came over to Asaka and Papa Ge and took a seat next to her sister.

"Would you mind speaking in clearer sentences, my brother?" Erzulie said, fighting down a smile.

"Little Daniel. Was. Walking past. Ti Moune's tree. And he met a peasant girl there. Coincidence?" Papa Ge's foot was tapping against the floor with agitated impatience.

"Of course not," Agwe said, entering the room.

"You knew of this?" Papa Ge asked.

Asaka, with some alarm, noticed a vein pulsing in Papa Ge's temple- a sign of extreme anger on the God's face.

"What's wrong? So we facilitated a simple meeting. What's the matter with you, Papa Ge?"

"History cannot repeat itself, 'Saka," Papa Ge muttered. "I don't think any of us could take us."

"But Sophia is not Ti Moune, Papa Ge. And history will not repeat itself. We're only trying to give Daniel something he wants."

"Sophia?" Papa Ge spat. "You're kidding."

Silence came over the room and Papa Ge knew they were all thinking back to the peasant girl's birth, roughly nine years earlier…

FLASHBACK

_Each time a new peasant or Grand Homme was born on the Antilles Island, the four Gods conversed to decide which of the four of them would be most responsible for his or her life. In some cases, all four gods ended up influencing a particular life, but there was always one God that made the final decision about their life._

_On one particularly bleary night, about a year after little Daniel was born to Andrea, the four Gods were preparing to decide upon a loa for a little peasant child that was to be born that night. _

_The day had been moderately temperate, no storm, so it stood to reason that this birth had very little to do with Agwe. The God of Water was a loa only to those who were born on days of his rain showers, or even his terrible storms. Papa Ge rarely took people into his care, since no person wanted the Death God to rule their lives. In fact, the guys were sure the decision just came to rest between Asaka and Erzulie. Since the Love Goddess had recently taken a peasant girl into her care, it was nearly decided that Asaka would be the loa for the unborn no-name._

_However, as the wail of the new born girl pierced the still night, the four gods saw the face of little Sophia, the infant, and everything changed. _

_Just above her left eye there was a birthmark, in the shape of a little heart. _

_Erzulie stared in wonder._

_It didn't happen often, but occasionally, someone really blessed by the gods had a marking somewhere on their skin that chose their loa for them. This heart, and therefore this girl, belonged to Erzulie. _

END FLASHBACK

"Yes, Sophia. And this time will be different, We'll make sure of it," Asaka said. The truth was, they all missed the meddlesome way they had dealt in Ti Moune's life, and they wanted to experience that again. Well, three of them did, anyway.

Furious, Papa Ge stormed out of the room. How? How could his three idiot friends think that meddling in peasant and grand homme affairs would be a good idea? Was this a game to them? Did they not remember? It had been over ten years since Ti Moune's death, but the pain of her loss was still a fresh wound. Did the other three not remember the pain?

The gods had all watched Sophia closely as she grew up, since people were rarely born with physical markings of the gods on their person. And, it seemed, Erzulie and Asaka had been planning the meeting of Little Daniel and young Sophia since the birth of the strange girl, destined to love.

Abruptly, it made Papa Ge furious. How dare they hide something this big from him, and for so long? The gods were best friends, so entwined in each other's lives that to hide anything would take an extreme amount of effort. It was never worth it for any one of them to keep secrets. What was different about this moment? Had they known he would react badly?

Something in his head told him that this would end badly. There could be no happiness between a Beauxhomme and a peasant girl. Hadn't that already been proved?

After spending about three minutes in the hall outside of the chamber where the other three gods were waiting, Papa Ge turned back and entered the room once more.

"There can be no happy ending," he said darkly.

Erzulie shook her head. "You can't know that," she whispered.

"Well, you can't know it will end well, can you?" he argued back. Erzulie flinched from Papa Ge's biting tone.

Asaka placed a hand on Erzulie's shoulder as a sign of comfort, and Agwe's hand twitched, as if he wanted to step forward and move closer to Papa Ge.

"If we can't hope for peace on the island, what's the point?" Asaka said, matching the Love Goddess's hushed tone.

"Grand Hommes and peasants will _never_ exist as one. It will _not_ happen." The words hurt Papa Ge to say, but he believed them to be true. He had been around too long. He knew the true cruelty of men. But, Asaka was right. If there was no goal, nothing to reach for, what was the point of existing at all?

"You're wrong, Papa Ge," Agwe said, his voice rising slightly. The God of Water was always the one who had trouble controlling his temper, but at this point, the Death God was in no condition to try and calm Agwe down.

"I won't back you three up on this. I won't encourage this," he said, nearly a yell.

Asaka and Erzulie both closed their eyes, but Agwe's blue-grey orbs stared directly into Papa Ge's coal black ones.

"You'll turn your back on us?" Agwe asked.

Papa Ge stared at the girls, who were probably busy trying to imagine how the scenario would play out. The worst thing any of the four of them could imagine was being separated. In fact, the only thing that could kill a God was the hatred of another God. If they betrayed each other, they could live no more.

"I could never…" Papa Ge began, but then he stopped. "I can't help you do this, Agwe. But I also can't stop you, can I?"

There was a dark silence in which Agwe, Papa Ge, Asaka, and Erzulie stared at one another, waiting for the next move.

"I should go," Papa Ge finally said, and he turned and swept out of the room, and out of his life as he knew it.

* * *

**I hope that you get a chance to read. I'd love some really specific feedback, such as what your favorite part or line from the story was. Obviously, it's Papa Ge centric. I just wanted to explain what Papa Ge looks like to me- my friend who played him in the play is quite short, with tanned skin and coal-black hair. For our production, we put black symbols all over his chest, back, and arms, that were representative of the French Antilles religion. We did quite a bit of research for our production.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Wow, it's been awhile. Thank you for your patience, I really appreciate it. Life all seemed to hit me at once, and I've been getting in next to no writing time. I've got about a million projects going right now, and for some reason this one got pushed to the backburner. But hey, here I am. Please drop a review and let me know how I did! There will probably be only one or two more chapters after this one, since I've been able to wrap this story toward the climax quicker than expected. Get ready for a real shocker next chapter folks! That is, if anyone still bothers to read this...**Little Daniel, now twelve years old, ran eagerly out of his bedroom and down the stairs, shooting a quick smile at his mother who was in the kitchen, and out the front door.

* * *

Glancing up at the sun, he saw it was almost noon. Putting on one last sprint, he reached the beautiful tree right outside of the old broken gate of the Hotel Beauxhomme.

"Sophia?" Daniel called breathlessly.

"Here!" A voice, the tinkling of bells, sounded from high above Little Daniel's head.

Daniel looked up, and, grinning, swung himself easily onto one of the lower branches of the tree, and climbed swiftly, with the grace of many hours of practice, to sit with his dearest friend Sophia, high above the world.

"You're late, Daniel," Sophia reprimanded softly.

"My father wouldn't leave the house, I'm sorry," he said.

They had learned, long ago, that the key was keeping their friendship hidden from the elder Daniel. Andrea was much too oblivious to see the signs, but Daniel, having been in a similar situation not all that long ago, was one to be watched out for.

"Should we go?" Little Daniel asked after a few minutes of comfortable silence.

"I want to show you something, Daniel," Sophia whispered, and she lithely shimmied down the tree, jumping off one of the lower branches. By the time Daniel had joined her on solid ground, she was skipping freely across a meadow of tall grass. Daniel laughed at her eagerness and sprinted to catch up with her, catching her hand with his own. They continued that way, hands entwined, all the way across the meadow.

* * *

Erzulie and Asaka, the loas of the young friends, watched from a perch high above as Daniel and Sophia ran hand in hand. Erzulie smiled at their happiness, but her smile, like everything with the Gods these days, was twinged with bitterness.

Papa Ge, wherever he was, had not spoken to any of them since he learned of their plan to help Daniel and Sophia fall in love.

Asaka frowned slightly when she saw Erzulie's grief, placing an arm around her shoulder. "He'll come around, 'Zulie."

"It's been two years," Erzulie whispered. It came out as nearly a moan, filled with so much sadness that Asaka could hardly bear it.

"What's two years to the infinitely immortal?" Asaka tried to coax.

"Not necessarily immortal," Erzulie argued.

Asaka straightened up, shocked. "The only way we can die is if-" she stopped, suddenly, comprehending Erzulie's meaning. "The only way we can die is if another God grows to hate us. Oh, Erzulie, Papa Ge may be angry with us, but he could _never_ hate any one of us. You know this."

Erzulie nodded somberly. "But even so-"

"Stop it, Erzulie. Banish the thought. Papa Ge could never do that to us," Asaka said. Her voice rang with conviction, but she, too, wondered when Papa Ge would come back to them. Would this animosity last all through Sophia and Little Daniel's life time? Could there be no peace between the four Gods until this event had long been swept away with the deaths of its feature subjects?

* * *

Papa Ge, too, watched Sophia and Little Daniel as they frolicked freely across the meadow, filled with long and beautiful blades of grass. Each thin strip of green and yellow reminded him of Asaka. The dew of the morning, long since faded away from the leaves, reminded him of Agwe. And the two young children, holding hands, radiating happiness, reminded him of Erzulie. But, the happy friends also reminded him of why he was in the situation he was in. Sophia and Daniel reminded him very strongly of Ti Moune, as well.

And how, how could he _possibly_ condone behavior that was to bring about such extreme grief? Being away from his friends, his family- it was hurting him. No, it was killing him, or at least that's what it felt like. But soon enough, Daniel and Sophia would be nothing more than memories, scattered in the wind. When that time came, he supposed he could bring himself to return to his sisters and his brother. Maybe he could even speed the process of their imminent deaths to a more hasty conclusion…

But no, Erzulie and the others would never forgive him if he killed the small children. Besides, they were only twelve. And other than the fact that they were disobeying the natural order of the island, what reason did he have for hurting them?

* * *

"Sophia, what is it?" Little Daniel asked again. Sophia was now tugging impatiently on his arm, forcing him to speed up.

"You'll see, just turn here and…" suddenly the two youths were faced with a river, hidden by a bend in the trees, a small clearing that was untouched and utterly perfect. Little Daniel was struck by the beauty of such a place, and he stared at Sophia in wonder.

"How did you find this place?" he whispered. It seemed a horrible marring to the picture to speak at a normal volume.

"I was just… wandering around in here one day, and I thought… well, you'll think it strange of me, Daniel…"

"What?" Little Daniel responded eagerly. "What happened?"

"I thought I heard a woman singing," Sophia whispered. She shook her head. "It makes no sense, but it felt like the woman was asking me to come to her. But when I found this clearing, there was no one in sight."

Little Daniel stared at her. He did, of course, think it odd, but at the same time exciting and beautiful. "Well, whoever the woman was, we should thank her for bringing us here."

"Yes," Sophia laughed. "Yes, perhaps it is Asaka, growing us our own little meadow."

Daniel paused, looking slightly uncomfortable. He had been raised a Christian, and was constantly having to skirt away from Sophia's mention of her pagan religion.

"Oh," Sophia said, the grin sliding off of her face. "Or maybe it was your Gods that did this for us. I didn't mean to imply that-"

Daniel forced a smile. "It's alright Sophia. You have done nothing wrong."

The two stood, their hands still intertwined, looking out at the beautiful river, green, soft grass, tall, graceful trees... and they both knew, somewhere deep within themselves, that this place was to be theirs.

* * *

A shaky breath was coming not too far from where Papa Ge sat, staring down at the two happy children, how age sixteen, who were sitting in their meadow, laughing together, sharing an occasional kiss, clearly and devastatingly in love.

The Death God stared around from his perch in a tree, looking for the source of the noise. He heard a whimper and suddenly identified the voice as Erzulie's.

All that Papa Ge could think was that clearly she was upset by something. Their fighting didn't seem to matter, not for that minute anyway, as Papa Ge gently shifted in his spot, looking for the Love Goddess.

When he located her, he made his way quickly over to her, and saw that her head was downcast and tiny crystalline drops of water were dripping down her fair cheeks.

"'Zulie?" Papa Ge muttered softly.

Erzulie looked around sharply at him, and then gasped and jumped back a bit. "What are you doing here?" she demanded sharply.

"I heard you, I- I just wanted to make sure you were… al…right, I guess," Papa Ge said uncertainly.

"You have no business trying to comfort me, Papa Ge," Erzulie said angrily. "Now leave me in peace."

Papa Ge's eyes widened. "But, Erzulie, I just-"

"_Go,_" Erzulie insisted harshly.

Papa Ge stared at her for a couple of timeless seconds, and then closed his eyes in defeat and disappeared from Erzulie's side.

* * *

"I just ran into Papa Ge," Erzulie muttered softly to the empty foyer of the God's abode. Agwe and Asaka entered immediately.

"What?" Asaka asked, shocked. None had seen him since his abrupt departure, and from the look that Erzulie was wearing, the encounter between the two could not have been pleasant.

"What did he do?" Agwe said, somewhat demandingly, striding over to Erzulie and placing a hand on her shoulder. It was meant as a comforting gesture, but his hand was shaking so badly that it hardly came over as one.

"No, no, he was perfectly nice, he found me... crying..." Erzulie trailed off slowly.

There was a minute of tense silence. Admitting weakness was the hardest thing for any of them to do. Tears were seen as a pathetically human tribute to grief, and all four gods vividly remembered that the last time any of them had openly cried in front of one another had been after Ti Moune's death.

"Why were you crying, 'Zulie?" Asaka asked quietly.

"I just... I never meant for any of this to ruin things with our brother," Erzulie moaned.

Agwe took a deep shuddering breath.

"I mean, what are we doing?" Erzulie continued, a little breathless. "Papa Ge is a thousand times more important to me than some stupid love story between two pitiful mortals."

"Erzulie," Asaka said, somewhat sternly. "It's not just Daniel and Sophia. It's the entire goal of our immortal existence. To successfully unite the two worlds on this island... that's what we have always strived for. We came so close with Ti Moune and the last generation of Beauxhommes. Who's to say this won't be the time our dreams come true?"

"But... Papa Ge..." Erzulie said. "We can't forget about him."

"He's too proud," Agwe said. "This will be a lesson to him. We all miss him, 'Zulie. But he needs to learn to let pain into his blackened heart. He cannot shield himself from hurt forever."

The three gods stood together for a few minutes, silent. Then, Asaka spoke. "What did he say, when he saw you?"

"He just... he wanted to know if I was okay," Erzulie said, shrugging. "He looked awful, like he's sick with a human ailment. Thin, weak. It hurt to see."

"He is missing us, just as we are missing him. And he has no one to turn to. You'll see. We're in the right. He'll come around," Agwe spoke with such conviction that for the moment, the subject was dropped, though the three friend were by no means certain about what Agwe had said.

* * *

Young Daniel had not the slightest clue of what he had done wrong. Years had passed since they first started frequenting the little clearing with the river that Sophia had found, lured to it by Erzulie's dulcet tones. Since then, they had set up a system so they could meet on a regular basis in their own private world, far away from prying eyes. Daniel sat, hopelessly alone, in the meadow on one of their pre-arranged days.

This was the second time this week she had failed to show up, and Daniel had no other way of contacting her. He was beginning to worry something had happened to his dear Sophia, and could hardly bear the thought of her being hurt.

How many nights had they made love under the soft veil of trees and stars in this very spot? How many days had they sat, hand in hand, whispering sweet nothings to each other, their words mixing in with the gently rushing river and swaying branches? Sophia, at the ripe age of eighteen, had never failed to meet her beloved before, and this fact made Daniel's heart thump uncomfortably near the region of his Adam's Apple.

Perhaps she was angry at him? But what could he have done to upset her so?

Before he could think more on the subject, Sophia herself came walking into view, her feet shuffling nervously. She lacked the purposeful stride she normally possessed, and her normally assertive expression was replaced with one of utmost submission.

"Sophia!" Daniel gasped in surprise and relief. "Oh, thank God you're alright! Thank all of _your_ Gods. Where have you been?"

He sprang to his feet and ran toward her. Instead of running in for an embrace has Young Daniel might have expected, Sophia cringed away from him.

"What? What is it?" Daniel said, shocked and more than a little hurt.

"Daniel," Sophia spoke very softly. "I... We... I'm pregnant."


	4. Chapter 4

AN: I know it's been a thousand years since I updated... Umm... no promises that I'm ever going to finish this. How's that for motivation for you to read? But if there's anyone out there that still cares at all, here's a pathetically short chapter. Review?

* * *

Agwe couldn't believe it. Simply couldn't accept what had happened.

"'Zulie? You did this?" he asked her, his voice gruff with panic.

"What? Sophia's child?" Erzulie asked, breezing into the room at Agwe's words. Asaka followed on the same breath and came to stand by her brother and sister.

"It will be good for them, I think. The growth of a new life. It's what needed."

"This… this is becoming even more messy than the last time," Agwe muttered. Something was stirring in his mind. It was Papa Ge, and his cold and harsh refusal to accept their meddlesome ways into Sophia and Daniel's lives. Horrified, the God of Water found himself starting to agree.

"What, so you'd like to join your brother in exile?" Asaka demanded. Erzulie flinched, and Agwe sighed. Stupid empathy link. Absolutely no privacy for your own thoughts.

"No. I just… this is so complex, I'm worried about the ramifications."

Asaka's pale eyebrows scrunched up in her head.

"What are you talking about?"

"The… the end result… a child. Half Beauxhomme, half peasant. It will straddle the two worlds. It could be dangerous. For the child, and for its parents. For this whole island."

There was a silence so deep that Erzulie shuddered.

"It had to be done."

Agwe looked at the Goddess of Love, and nodded. "So it did."

"Sophia? Darling, look at me," Daniel pleaded, turning the distraught girl toward him. "We will triumph over this. Together."

Sophia looked at him love with shock written over every crease of her too-young face. "Together? But, Daniel… this is so improper… you'll be in such trouble!"

"You think I care what they think?" Daniel demanded. "I have burdened you with this child and I shall help you in whatever way you ask me."

"Th-thank you," Sophia cried, falling forward into Daniel's waiting arms. The crumpled to the floor, and Sophia curled up in his arms like a child, clutching at his clothes and weeping.

A dark shadow watched from his corner. The plants near his bare feet withered where he stood. "Damn it all. A child," Papa Ge muttered. "How could the girls do this?" he wondered, speaking of his sisters.

It had to end. A dark smile lit up the God's face. A restless breeze turned the clearing as cold as ice.

In their huddle, Sophia and Daniel grappled closer together, gathering strength and warmth from each other.

They could feel the end approach.

A bitter expression twisted Papa Ge's mouth around. He _was_, after all, the God of Death. And he had power here that his three siblings did not.

And it was time for action.

"Erzulie?" a soft voice muttered from the earth below. The Love Goddess, who had been in the middle of plaiting Asaka's long, light hair, turned toward the sound of her name.

"O, beautiful one… Please forgive me," Sophia cried. Her hands were up in the air in askance, her body arched over the ground. "I have wronged, but I want to make it better. Daniel says he shall help me. I love my child, Goddess. I love my child as I love my Daniel. Please, help me."

Erzulie felt one single drop of crystalline liquid drip from her bright blue eyes and down a flawless cheek.

Asaka glanced up at her sister. She had not heard the prayer, as was custom. Only the God for whom the prayer was intended could hear the words.

"Erzulie?" Asaka asked, her voice as soft as she could make it.

Agwe appeared in the doorway. He rushed forward to comfort his favorite sibling. "Oh, 'Zulie, what's happened?" he murmured, brushing her hair back with his long and spindly fingers.

"Sophia prays for her child," she said, her voice nothing more than a breath.

Agwe closed his eyes and dropped his head to his chest. "We shall help her. They shall be happy. And together." But even as he spoke the words, Agwe could feel himself doubting them. There was a strange aura in the air that stank of betrayal and a horrid future, and none of the three Gods could promise any sort of happy ending.

It was difficult to ignore the time passing. Sophia said her prayers nightly as her stomach grew, and Daniel grew sullen and remorse with the thought of the impending doom of his future. He truly did love his Sophia, and wished to remain with her and the child. But the ever-looming matter remained - what was he to do about his parents? What would the lovely French Andrea see if she could see her precious son, consorting with a peasant girl? What would his father say?

There were moments when the distraught boy thought his father understood - there was this look that the Elder Daniel would get in his eyes sometimes as he stared out the gates of his grand estate. His eyes would fix upon a tall and beautiful tree, and he would smile like he were truly happy about something. These were the moments when the younger Daniel felt sure that his father somehow knew, and somehow wanted him to be that happy, too.

"Daniel?" Sophia asked one day. "Will we be together?"

It seemed such a simple question, but Daniel had a grievous time forming an answer. Finally, with an attempt at a smile, he responded.

"Yes, Sophia. Yes. No matter what happens, I shall always be with you."

From far above, three Gods stood with linked hands, and thought perhaps maybe they were doing the right thing after all.

But of course, that was before the day Sophia gave birth to her child. That was before the day Papa Ge struck.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: I didn't die. I'm here. It's a miracle! There's only one more chapter after this... I know this is really short, but I'm just trying to get this finished at this point. Thanks for reading!**

* * *

He wouldn't accept this. He couldn't accept the hurt it would bring. Sophia was having her baby, and Papa Ge was certain his siblings were around somewhere, watching the scene with _joy_, of all things. Couldn't they see? This wasn't right. This couldn't be the way of the world.

The mansion where the Elder Daniel lived with his Andrea was relatively empty. The man and woman of the house were off showing the island to visitors, and Young Daniel, in an act of desperation, had brought the pained Sophia to his own chambers.

"It hurts!" she cried out.

Daniel winced. "I'm so sorry, my love. It will be… It will end soon… I…" In all honesty, young Daniel had absolutely no idea what to do in a situation like this. Part of him wished his father was there, although of course this was nonsense. Still, he did feel in some ways as though he was not alone.

For good reason, of course. Above the scene, three Gods stared down at the scene. Erzulie was shining with anticipation. "The child will be _beautiful_. Who shall care for her?"

Agwe looked at the empty skies, and shrugged. "Ladies?"

Asaka smiled feebly. "We shall wait for the birth."

A frightening shriek echoed through the world, and the Gods dropped low to the ground, ready for the arrival of a new child.

"Sophie?" Daniel screamed, panicked. A wail pierced the air. A child was born. But…

"_NO!"_ Erzulie yelled, running forward. "No! What are you _doing_?"

Sophia, bleeding freely, was struggling for her last breaths. "Daniel… let me hold…"

There was sobbing from everyone. Agwe and Asaka, horrified, heard the sounds echo around the clearing. The newborn squealed in fear, Daniel sobbed over his dying love, and Erzulie was yelling at –

"_Papa Ge,"_ Agwe gasped. The God of Death was taller than they had ever seen him, positively writing with power.

"You can't kill her! Why would you - " With a violent action unbecoming a Goddess of Love, Erzulie lunged forward, attempting to reach Sophia before the last breath left her body.

"It's _done_, Erzulie. Let it lie! Stay back!"

Asaka tried to run forward to aid her sister, but Agwe held her back. "We can't stop this," he said, half moaning with the tragic truth.

"I can't believe you would do this! To her! To _me_! Papa Ge, I – I…" Erzulie looked livid. Her face, more beautiful than any mortal could ever be, was twisted in an ugly expression.

"Stay back, Erzulie, I mean it."

A gasp rent the air. Daniel, with a wail of despair, had unsheathed a knife that had been sitting on the table beside the bed.

"Papa Ge, stay back or I'll…"

"Or you'll what?" Papa Ge shrieked. "I'm tired of this! I'm tired of all of you!" he yelled, throwing his arm out to encompass the room. Agwe and Asaka remained silent. The room seemed to grow darker, charged with sinister power.

"Move!"

"Stop him!"

"Help the baby!"

And then Daniel plunged the knife into his chest.

A inhumane shriek pierced the air, and Erzulie attempted to force her way past Papa Ge.

"Stay back, you foolish girl! Stay back! I _hate_ you!"

Erzulie collapsed.

* * *

**AN: Gasp! If you're confused, go back and read the previous chapters. I know it's been a while... Please review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: I know, this is a miracle. After this, there's just one more short chapter and then it's over! I'll be posting it just as soon as I put the finishing touches up. I hope there are still some people out here who remember this story... You might want to go back to refresh your memory. Please leave a review!**

* * *

The room was silent for a moment, and then the newborn infant let out a piercing wail. Asaka darted forward to pick her up, whispering soothing words. Agwe had dropped to the floor beside Erzulie, who was motionless and pail.

"No," Papa Ge said softly. "No, I didn't mean it!" He took a few steps forward but Asaka, the baby in her arms, stepped between them. "'Zulie!" Papa Ge said. "Please – is she…"

Agwe looked up at his brother and sister, keeping his hands supporting Erzulie's head. "She's alive. You didn't mean it."

"I didn't. I didn't. Oh no, no, no…" Papa Ge looked around him – Daniel and Sophia were lying still on the bed, their life's breath gone forever. The baby was still squirming in Asaka's arms. With a look of disgust at Papa Ge, the Earth Goddess placed the child into his arms and dropped to the floor beside her sister, who was stirring weakly.

"What – happened to me?" Erzulie asked quietly, attempting to stand but then falling weakly against Agwe's side.

"Erzulie, I'm so sorry. I love you – _please_ – " Papa Ge was hardly aware of what he was saying, but he did notice the realization cross Erzulie's face. He tried, feebly, to summon up the righteous anger he had felt a few minutes before.

"I told you there could be no happy ending," he murmured darkly.

Asaka and Agwe, still supporting a weakened Erzulie, turned to stare at him.

"And whose fault is that, pray tell?" Agwe demanded angrily.

The God of Death winced. "Erzulie, I'm… I…"

"Papa Ge, I do not need your apologies or your explanations. We are leaving now."

"What about the kid?" Papa Ge demanded.

"You killed her parents, so I guess she belongs to you," Asaka said, and the three Gods turned and left Papa Ge, bewildered, his arms wrapped around the little one.

Shaking violently, Papa Ge held the little girl tight to him.

He was truly alone, for the first time.

* * *

As for the other three gods – the returned to their palace and placed the weakened Erzulie upon a lavishly decorated sofa, kneeling beside her and brushing their fingers through her hair and along her arms.

"We'll be alright now," Agwe said, hating the way the lie tasted on his tongue.

"Not without our brother," Erzulie said, tears falling freely down her cheeks.

"It'll… It'll all change for the better. It must," Asaka said, her words feeling empty.

The truth was – they didn't know how to exist as a team of three.

* * *

Papa Ge was staring at the child in his arms, and did not hear the approach of footsteps in the hall until a shout of horror pierced the air. Papa Ge jumped behind the curtain in the room, watching Andrea take in the scene before her.

"Daniel! Daniel, come quickly!" she yelled.

"What? Andrea, are you… No. No!" Daniel, shocked, saw his son lying in his bed with the peasant girl beside him.

"He's dead," Andrea moaned.

"They both are," Daniel murmured. "Who is she?" he whispered. Shock prevailed over all emotion.

"Her name is Sophia," Papa Ge spoke, revealing himself, still holding Sophia and Daniel's daughter.

Andrea screamed.

"Wha- Who are you?" the elder Daniel demanded, shielding his wife from the stranger.

"I am the murderer of your son, and of your son's lover. I am the one who killed the mother and father of this infant," Papa Ge spoke the words with shame, for the err in his ways was clear to him now.

Andrea seemed to latch on to only one detail of Papa Ge's words. "The mother and father?"

"I'll kill you," Daniel said. There were faint traces of anger clouding his features, but he still seemed to be white-faced with disbelief.

Papa Ge stared at him solemnly. "If that were possible, I'd tell you to do it. But as it is, all I can do is ask you a favor."

Daniel snorted. "What makes you think I'd do that?"

"Do you not remember me, Daniel?" Papa Ge asked.

Daniel only stared for a minute, looking at Papa Ge's dark skin, dark hair, and the strange black markings… but then…

"You aren't real. You- you're just a nightmare!"

"Daniel, what are you talking about?" Andrea demanded shrilly.

Papa Ge held out the bundle of blankets toward the pair.

"Here, take her. She's your granddaughter."

Andrea seemed rather repulsed by having peasant blood in her family, but Papa Ge forced the child into Daniel's arms.

He turned to leave, but glanced back, hesitantly, to say…

"Her name is… Ti Moune. I will be her loa, but I can only do so much. Watch after her."

"Loa? Daniel, what is this man talking about?" Andrea asked, tears staining her cheeks, a mixture of sadness and fear.

Daniel ignored his wife, staring down at the little Ti Moune in wonder.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Papa Ge said, unsure of how to phrase it. Darkly, he thought to himself that the phrase didn't indicate that he was sorry for killing them, only that he was sorry that they were dead.

"Just get out," Daniel hissed.

The Death God nodded once, and was gone.

* * *

**Author's Note: Please review!**


	7. Epilogue

**Author's Note: We're at the end! I did it! This is just a short epilogue that finishes up the story. It doesn't have an exactly _happy_ ending, but it gives some room for hope. I hope you enjoy! Please leave a review.**

* * *

Years passed, and as Papa Ge had nothing better to do, he often spent time contemplating various aspects of this whole disaster- the disaster that had separated him from his family. One day he realized that the Beauxhomme line was now tainted. The young Ti Moune, being raised by Andrea and Daniel, was the only heir to the French family. It painted a hopeful picture of the future. Maybe some day the peasants and Grand Hommes really would feel free to exist together, without animosity or hatred. There was also something to be said about Papa Ge's christening the little granddaughter of Daniel Beauxhomme as "Ti Moune". Not as a title, but as a name, this little girl would never be an orphan. Daniel would look after the little one, the little girl who would remind him every day of her namesake, his one and only love.

He saw the other Gods occasionally. At first, they would turn away in anger or disgust, and Papa Ge would feel the hole in his chest rip open all the wider. But as time passed, their gazes turned to longing, or sadness, or even pity. There still seemed to be no chance for his return, but at least the burning look of almost-hatred had gone from their eyes.

Papa Ge sat beneath a tree- _her_ tree, for days at a time, when he had nothing better to be doing. He could not go back to Agwe, Asaka, and Erzulie, and he had little else to do, and definitely nowhere else to go.

It was one day, years after the original Ti Moune's death, years after Daniel and Sophia had died, even years after Andrea and her husband had passed into the next world, that Papa Ge glanced up into the branches of the tree, which still stood strong and tall, as though not a day had passed.

Ti Moune, Sophia's little girl, was now an elderly woman, who had married a French man. Papa Ge had taken the man's life only a few short weeks earlier, and the mourning widow often took walks outside of the hotel's grounds during the warm afternoons. Her usual route took her straight past the tree of her namesake.

Usually, when Papa Ge heard the woman's approach, he made a quick move to disappear. But, though he had been putting off killing the woman who called Papa Ge her loa, in his blackened heart, the God of Death knew she could not live for much longer.

Andrea and Daniel had taught her to fear Papa Ge, the demon. But Ti Moune had always respected the God who had killed her parents, and spared her life.

As the elderly woman hobbled by, she saw the small figure of Papa Ge crouching in the shadows under the tree. Immediately, she knew who it was. Instead of cringing in fear, which was the response Papa Ge was used to, Ti Moune nodded her head in reverence, and whispered "Thank you for letting me live this life."

Papa Ge shuddered at her brave and clear tone. It cut into his heart, reminding him of the original Ti Moune, a peasant girl that he had learned to love once, years ago.

The God tipped his hat to the woman as she passed, to take a walk among the village of the peasants and through the open fields for one last time.

"I'm sorry," the whisper issued out of the God's mouth. He could not say who he was speaking to. There were too many people to choose from. The woman he was about to kill, the long dead Julian and Euralie, his sisters and brothers- Agwe, Erzulie, Asaka. Daniel, Andrea, their son and Sophia… all of these people deserved his sincerest apology. But suddenly, Papa Ge knew to whom he was speaking. "I am sorry, Désirée Dieu-Donné. I am sorry, Ti Moune."

A single leaf detached itself from Ti Moune's branches and came to settle itself at the God's feet.

A strange wind was stirring. The breezes whispered of forgiveness.

* * *

**Author's Note: THE END! Please review!**


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